Tales of the Heart Story 1: Building Relationships
by iseriouslyloveanime
Summary: "The Road to Eternal Love" title renewed to "Tales of the Heart". New title, same genre. All about love, humor, adventure, and drama. Bakugan Battle Brawlers is the main character. Rated K  for chapters best for ALL readers, T for later chaps for teens!
1. A Special Prologue

Tales of the Heart  
>Story One: Building Relationships<p>

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This is the renewed "The Road To Eternal Love". I replaced the title of the story with a new one to make it more interesting. Apologize for the readers who already read this. New title, same genre. It is all about humor, romance, adventures, drama, and more. Expect also changes to the chapters I've been updated recently so please bear with me. Expect also your fave animes to be added in the future chapters.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY SHOWS MENTIONED ABOVE. I ALSO DO NOT OWN SOME OF THE SONGS, WHICH WILL BE FEATURED IN THIS FAN FICTION STORY! THEY BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTFUL OWNERS AND ARTISTS WHO CREATED THESE SHOWS AND SONGS.

RATING ADVISORY: THIS STORY IS A CERTIFIED "K+" FOR CHAPTERS THAT ARE BEST READ FOR ALL READERS YOUNG AND OLD, AND "T" FOR LATER CHAPTERS THAT ARE ONLY TO TEENS AGED 13 ABOVE.

And by the way, use your imaginations guys!

**Prologue**

Have you read or have you watched some love stories recently? When you were a kid, you may have heard fairytale stories like Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella. And yes, you may have heard their prince charming as well, and then they married, and live-happily-ever-after-the-end sort of thing. Those were the days when you were a kid. You also watched some romantic stories on TV as you grow up. But let's just cut right there. I always ask myself: "Well there ever be a prince charming that will come to me and save me from trouble?" "That's just absurd", you might say. But who knows, in the end, the prince charming you've ever hoped for and your dream marriage might come true. But beware of the trials and triumphs.

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Runo Misaki. I am 24 years of age and yes you know it. I'm single. I'm now in Tokyo after I moved from Chicago. "Why" you may ask? Well, it's a long story. A very long story indeed. But you will find out later. Anyway, let me ask you: "What would you feel when your parents wanted you to move to another place or another country?" Well, for my part, after my father passed away because of stage 4 pancreatic cancer when I was just 12, my mother said to me that we are moving to Chicago. For me, it is a deadlock. "Why would we go to Chicago?" I thought to myself. Is it because she wants to run away and forget all the troubles in the past with my dad? I can't help myself crying in my bedroom for hours non-stop. I just couldn't stand it anymore. I kept on thinking my dad. And I asked myself this: "Should I go?" I kept on thinking hard enough. I don't wanna start a new life. I just wanted to stay in my house with my dad even though he is not here with me. I'm also going to miss my friends. But I don't have any choice. My mother applied me for a passport visa. And then my mom wanted to visit to a recruitment agency so that she wants to have a job abroad. The next day, my mom and I are started to pack. I took my cellphone off from my wallet and started texting to my closest friends. At the airport, I grabbed my cellphone and when I opened my inbox messages, there are 40 new messages in the past few minutes before we arrive at the airport. Some of these messages are from Julie, Alice, and Shun. But there is one message that is not only inspiring but it's really touching. Although it's long, I just couldn't help reading it over and over again. This message belongs to my one and only friend and he is none other than Dan Kuso. Dan is my closest friend since we were little. After all the fighting that we had, he's still my closest friend. Maybe you'll ask: "Do you have crush on him?" My answer: No comment on that particular manner. But you know what, he is handsome, gorgeous, and really funny. But that doesn't mean that I have a crush on him or something. When I read the message, I saw that he's not only a funny kind of person but he is also a person who gives an advice. Wow, I thought, that's the first time that he text a message like that. I liked the last part of his message: "Be strong. I know you could do it even though you're in another country. But I'll miss you so much." I was blushed at that time. And after I finished reading the message, the plane arrived and it was time for me to go and start a new life.

When I arrived at Chicago, it was very different. The buildings were different than in Tokyo. The streets are all busy. And lastly, it is very cold. When I moved in to an apartment, I saw a room filled with dirt. That room wasn't cleaned yet. So we moved in to that space and tried to clean everything up. When I reached 15, my friends texted me and said to me that they were here. I was very surprised when I saw them outside the apartment. I told them: "How do you guys know that we are living in that apartment?" They said to me that Alice knows Chicago very well and the residents there know her too. So we started to live a happy life.

That's the end of the story but when you read in the future chapters, you'll notice that it's not only about friendships or adventures. It's also about romance, drama, tragedy, and humor. And now I'm back to Tokyo, there are a lot of things for me to discover. I am going to experience love at the highest level possible. I'm also going to meet new friends along the way. This is going to be a one rocky ride. In the next few chapters that you're going to read, you will witness a flashback of me when I was just a high school student. You will then realize what is my experience when I was in high school. It's like in love stories on TV and in books. First, the journey when they were kids then proceed to the story proper. So do stay tuned as the author will update future chapters that will give you a ride of your life. And please be patient.

xoxoxoxo

Runo Misaki

P.S. I wish this fanfiction will have millions of visitors and millions of hits around the world. And please review as well.

= END OF PROLOGUE =

Well you heard her all right. So did you have a lot of fun reading or is it just plain boring. For those of you who got bored, I'm sorry. To tell you the truth, I finished this Fan Fiction for just an hour (or maybe over an hour). And please if I have grammar errors, please do let me know. So REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! I want your reviews after you read this one!

Oh, and for those of you who noticed an asterisk symbol, it means it is a question for you readers. So please review if you have an answer. If you didn't find the symbol yet, keep on looking! It maybe hiding somewhere.


	2. Chapter 1: Exam Day

Tales of the Heart  
>Story One: Building Relationships<p>

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hey, guys! As I said last time, I wanted to revise my fanfic and to divide the chapter one –the one that I just typed - into two separate chapters. The first one is the introduction or a prologue and the chapter one proper. This is because I just wanted to make the story more interesting and more exciting. And starting from this chapter onwards, instead of using words "he" and "she", I am just going to use the words "I" instead. After all, it's Runo Misaki's story. I'm just going to use these words during point-of-view scenes. I hope you guys understand that. Anyway, let's just begin this chapter with a disclaimer so that you can focus on the chapter proper.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY SHOWS MENTIONED ABOVE. I ALSO DO NOT OWN SOME OF THE SONGS, WHICH WILL BE FEATURED IN THIS FAN FICTION STORY! THEY BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTFUL OWNERS AND ARTISTS WHO CREATED THESE SHOWS AND SONGS.

RATING ADVISORY: THIS STORY IS A CERTIFIED "K+" FOR CHAPTERS THAT ARE BEST READ FOR ALL READERS YOUNG AND OLD, AND "T" FOR LATER CHAPTERS THAT ARE ONLY TO TEENS AGED 13 ABOVE.

**Chapter One  
>Exam Day<strong>

Where? Chicago, U.S.A. Date? November 16. It was a cold day for some residents here. But for me, life just can't get anything worse. Runo Misaki is the name. I was 16 years old back then. I once lived in Tokyo. But after all the tragedy that I felt, my mom and I moved in here. My father died because of pancreatic cancer. Stage 4, actually. So my mom wanted to live a new life abroad. So she chose Chicago and that's where we headed.

Okay, enough with the flashbacks. Let's go with the story. I woke up at 5 in the morning according to my cute Hello Kitty clock that my mom bought. Seriously mom, I'm a teenager not your average 7 year-old. At that time, I had a beauty sleep. But then, my beauty sleep was interrupted when someone called at me.

At first, I ignored it. But the phone kept on ringing and ringing. I started to complain about the ringing so it is time I answer the phone. Before I answered it, I saw the name "Dan Kuso" in the phone screen. What does he want?

"Hello?"

"RUNOOOOOOOOOO"

I jumped off the bed. And then the caller laughed.

I said to him: "Seriously Dan. Don't disturb me while I'm sleeping. I'm gonna kill you later!" So I dropped the phone call and went back to sleep but when I looked at the clock, it's already 5 in the morning! And speaking of the caller, allow me to introduce him. His name is Dan Kuso. He is also 16 and he always bother me whenever I'm busy. But at least he's hot! He's gorgeous, handsome, cute, but that doesn't mean I have a crush on him. So I rushed downstairs to see what mom's cooking today. My mom was surprised when she saw me in the kitchen.

"Oh, good morning, dear." My mom greeted.

"Hi, mom." I greeted her back.

"It's a good thing that you're up early."

"Yeah. Thanks to Dan."

"What? Dan? Again?"

"Yeah. He called me and started shouting at me."

"Well, honey, don't bother him. Just ignore him if he does something wrong."

"Thanks mom." I said to her. My mom always gives me advice.

I asked her: "Mom, what's for breakfast today?"

Mom answered: "Today's breakfast is scrambled eggs with bread."

Scrambled eggs with bread are my favorite breakfast meal. Second to pancakes served with chocolate syrup.

So I ate mom's dish and it's delicious. Mom always cooks delightful and inspiring recipes. After eating breakfast, I rushed back to the room to brush my teeth, take a bath, (blah blah blah), and went off to school. I always took the train to go to school. I sometimes use the bus or a cab to school. I also met my friends there at the subway.

When I use the subway, I have to wait 4 stations before I reached my destination – school, isn't it obvious. When the train reached the second station, I saw Dan in front of the train door. I guess he waited for minutes before the train arrives. Actually, he is always late going to school. But at this point, he is not. Actually, it's 45 minutes before the school opens. But this time, he brings his electric guitar. Well, maybe you guessed it, Dan is a lead singer of the school's popular band, Electro! He maybe practicing after school for the upcoming Christmas Party next week. He saw me beside the front door and sat down beside me.

"Hey." He greeted.

"Hey." I replied.

We are quiet for a few minutes and then I started talking.

"You know, you should suffer the consequences after you yelled at me this morning."

"Well, it's for your own good."

"For my OWN GOOD?" I questioned him. "Is that what you're doing to me this morning because it's for my own good?"

"What?" Dan asked "You're always late at school so I called you up the moment you're having your beauty sleep."

"Well, so do you, pervert! You're always late at school. ALWAYS!"

"Ha! No I'm not!" he said.

"Yes you are!" I said it back.

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are!" I said it again

Dan stopped talking to me and I continued talking.

"Seriously, I'm going to kick you right in front of people in this train." I pleaded him. "No wait, it's better if it's at school

"You'll never get away with that."

"Oh no, I will."

Then I stopped talking until the next station arrives. Only one more station left until I'm off to school, leaving this pervert behind, just in case. And I'm not going to be late. Besides, it's just only 30 minutes left before school opens. While I'm waiting for the next station, I picked up my iPod and grabbed my earphones. I played the music entitled "If I Die Young" by the Band Perry and I started to sing. Don't worry, I'm not going to be embarrassed in front of people at a train. Last time I sang on the train is last Monday. People are clapping at me because I was very good in singing. (_Why don't you sing along as well if you have an Mp3 player or an iPod with you?_)

_If I die young, bury me in satin_

_Lay me down on a bed of roses _

_Sink me in the river at dawn _

_Send me away with the words of a love song _

(While I sang the first lines, Dan was amazed at me because of my beautiful voice and I continued singing the second line)

_Lord make me a rainbow, I'll shine down on my mother _

_She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colors _

_Oh, and life ain't always what you think it ought to be, no _

_Ain't even gray, but she buries her baby _

_The sharp knife of a short life _

_Well, I've had just enough time _

(While I was about to sing the chorus, Dan interrupted and paused the music.

He said to me: "What song are you singing?"

I said to him: "If I Die Young… by the Band Perry."

"Oh, may I hear it?" he asked.

"Sure." I said and I put one earphone on Dan's ear. I continue playing the music)

_If I die young, bury me in satin _

_Lay me down on a bed of roses_

(He closed his eyes while playing the chorus. He maybe focused on something but I don't know what.)

_Sink me in the river at dawn _

_Send me away with the words of a love song_

(Dan said to me: "I love the music. Can I sing with you?"

"Sure." I said. I was blushed at that time. He sang the bridge.)

_The sharp knife of a short life _

_Well, I've had just enough time _

(Dan pulled his guitar out from the cover and started strumming. I wasn't even hearing his strumming guitar. So we started singing the next line.)

_And I'll be wearing white when I come into your kingdom _

_I'm as green as the ring on my little cold finger _

_I've never known the loving of a man _

_But it sure felt nice when he was holding my hand _

_There's a boy here in town, says he'll love me forever _

_Who would have thought forever could be severed by _

_The sharp knife of a short life _

_Well, I've had just enough time_

(He played his guitar and hundreds of people were amazed on what we are singing. Some of them didn't listen. Others were staring at us. But we don't even care about it.)

In the end, everyone applauded. They thanked us for a good music we had. They wished to have one more but the last station arrive and we rushed outside. The people inside the train are still clapping their hands. "Encore! Encore! Encore!" they cheered and we even didn't listen. We went out of the subway and we started riding the bus to school. The school is just 20 kilometers away and we are still 15 minutes left before school starts.

At the bus, Dan said to me: "You know you're voice is beautiful when you sing."

I was blushed at that time but then I said to him: "Thank you."

Dan said to me in a low quiet tone: "Look I'm very sorry that I yelled at you this morning."

I put a finger on his mouth and I said: "Don't worry, I'm not giving you any punishment. I'm just joking." And Dan kept quiet while I kept on blushing. "What was I thinking?" I thought "I should never do that to him." But oh well, I have no choice. I said that word and that's final.

Finally, we're on the school zone and were on time as well. I stepped out of the bus and I saw some students studying in their tables. Oh no, I forgot it's examination day today so that's why some students are studying not only outside the school but also inside as well. I totally forgot that it is a very important day for me to pass some of my subjects. To tell you the truth, my grades aren't really that good. I got a grade of 'F' in some of my subjects, 2 in minor subjects, 1 is major. So does Dan, almost all of his subjects have a grade of 'F'. Lucky for me, I have a grade of 'B-' in some subjects. I need to get all of these subjects passed before the end of the quarter. My school is as large as a famous university campus. But it's a high school, why shouldn't they have a college here? When you walked inside the school building, there are hundreds of thousands of lockers to put in your stuff. When you walked to the second floor, you will see the principal's office and the registrar's office all into one large room. When you walk farther east, you will see the teacher's lounge and just miles away from the lounge is the cafeteria. Believe me, that cafeteria is huge! It is like the size of a gymnasium. From the cafeteria, up north you will see the library. And when it comes to classrooms, there are over 60 classrooms inside the main building. There is also an annex building where there are over 30 classrooms inside. There is also a swimming pool, a gymnasium, and a football/soccer stadium – fit enough for a student to learn.

Back outside the school grounds, I was staring at the students studying in their chairs while Dan on the hand other hand tried to get me stop staring. I went back to my normal self when he pulled my hand inside the school building. I couldn't believe that I forgot to study to get ready for exams. I wish my friends are here with me, but no, I am right here beside that pervert!

"You forgot that today is exam day, aren't you?" Dan said to me.

I'm really nervous to answer that question because I can't tell the truth to him right away but…

"I knew it!" Dan said to me.

He really knew it that I didn't study. He's really a psychic or something.

"What?" I said. "I forgot about it, so what's important?"

I just smirk and I said to myself that I would pass this test in no time. It's not gonna bother me, at all.

"What's important?" he said to me and he started to touch my shoulders with his two bare hands. "Runo, you know what's important, right?"

"I know. I know." I said. "I need to have a chance to pass my grade. If not, it's gonna be summer class for the two of us."

"What do you mean the two of us?" he said. "I'm gonna pass this test and I'm gonna leave you behind. You know what, he thinks its easy but its not, I mean, come on!

"Are you sure about that?" I said to him. I asked him question to prove that he knows the lessons: "I'll ask you: How many are you absent?"

"Um…" he said. He scratches his head proving that he is about to lie. "…thirteen?"

"Wrong! The answer is twenty-one! Too close!" I said.

It's really true. I saw his attendance sheet and boy would you look at that, he has twenty-one absences in the fourth quarter. That's one lazy kind of guy, you know.

"Did you pay attention to the lessons discussed in the past meetings?" I asked him again.

He scratch his hand once more proving that he is about to lie, AGAIN! And then, the answer came… "No."

"Correct!" I said.

He doesn't pay any much attention at all in school since the first day of the fourth quarter started. And yup, another kind of laziness … INDEED!

"See, I told you!" I said. "There's no way you can't escape my questions!"

After that, he said to me: "Come on, we don't have any much time left!" So he grabbed my hand and pulled me to the library. And didn't I mention that we have only 9 minutes left before the exam starts. Good thing, I have my permit with me to take the exams. So we're now inside the library and there are so much students inside it. There is one group of students studying at one corner. Another group of students are studying on the other corner. There are some students studying alone and there are some who doesn't like to study at all and instead chatting and tweeting with their friends. We can't study properly in a place like this. So we find a place that's quiet and soothing and not disturbing. After all the time finding the right seats for the two of us, finally we found a perfect spot for us! There are two seats and a table surrounded by bookshelves at the tip of this room. Trust me, this library is very big and it has three floors. There are no escalators, just stairs. It's very big actually. So we took that spot and we didn't want anyone to sit on these chairs.

It's just a few minutes left before the exams starts until we heard an announcement from the principal of the school. "Attention please! We are going to suspend the exams until further notice due to a strong blizzard that is expected to hit Chicago today. We will send an SMS message regarding when to resume the exams. That is all!" We are in a state of shock right now and we are excited that the exams are finally suspended until further notice. The students cheered and applauded because of the announcement. Some of them were clapping and others were very disappointed. We are excited as well. Actually, we just started studying until the news came out to our ears.

"Wow! I can't believe it!" He said to me.

"Yeah, me too." I said.

"Well, we have much more time to study." He said.

"Yup."

And when Dan and I draw close to the windows, we were surprised that we can't see the whole city. We can see the snow falling fast.

"Looks like we can't go home today." He said.

"Do you think so?" I asked him.

"Yup. The snow is falling fast and it's strong, too." He explained. He goes to the window one more time to see the snow coming down fast.

As the students going home to escape this horrific blizzard, we are still at the school library to study instead of going home. We cannot put our lives in danger. And besides, it's too risky for us. Some students decided to stay in school as well. They were very disappointed that the announcement was called late. The staff and the administrators just found out that the blizzard is expected to hit the Chicago downtown area today.

I turned on the radio using my cellphone and I put the earplugs on – one earpiece for me and another earpiece for Dan – to listen to the news. When the news was on, the newscaster said it will last the blizzard until tomorrow night. So we can't even think about relaxing around and just having fun. We still have time to study and we promise ourselves that we can pass the exams. But the real question: How am I supposed to go home with that pesky pervert on my side? What should I do?

= END OF CHAPTER ONE =

Okay, review time! Guys, I just wanted to tell you this. Regards to the story, may I ask everyone what are your comments, your suggestions, or your questions with no foul words, and no violent reactions? Do you want to have a love scene on it or do you want to have a suspense kind of chapter. Please let me know and I'm going to answer everything. Who knows? Maybe I am going to post your "shout-outs" on the next chapter. The more reviews, the better! Okay, review, review, review!


	3. Chapter 2: Blizzard

Tales of the Heart  
>Story One: Building Relationships<p>

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hey guys! Chappie 2 is now up and I apologize for the late update. Before we move on to the chapter proper, I just wanted to read to you a review from a user. From ilovecartoonslol "Loved it Loved it and Loved it! but wait, isn't Runo 22 or something? anyways, Update soon!" and "freaking love it already, cant wait to click next chapter :)" I just wanted to say thank you for your kind response. I advise you to stay updated at my fanfics and spread the word to other users out there. Take note that this is a flashback from her high school days. You'll need to get used tom this.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE SHOWS AND THE SONGS WHICH WILL BE USED IN THIS FANFIC STORY. THESE BELONGS TO ITS RESPECTFUL OWNERS. I HOPE FOR YOUR KIND CONSIDERATION AND UNDERSTANDING.

RATING ADVISORY: THIS STORY IS A CERTIFIED "K+" FOR CHAPTERS THAT ARE BEST READ FOR ALL READERS YOUNG AND OLD, AND "T" FOR LATER CHAPTERS THAT ARE ONLY TO TEENS AGED 13 ABOVE.

**Chapter 2**

**Blizzard**

One. Snowy. Blizzard. Yes, that's right. That's the scene in Chicago this morning as I look out the window of the school's prestigious library. And yes, you've guessed it; I'm still stranded. The time here is 8:05am, supposedly the exams should start an hour ago. But as I've said to you earlier, the exams got cancelled because of this catastrophic BLIZZARD! I really hate this life! Well, think about it this way; good thing it postponed so that I can do whatever I want, whenever I want. That's the good news! But the bad news – sigh – I'm still stuck with a pervert. I know what you're thinking. 'Who's that pervert?' you might ask. Well, it's Dan Kuso! Seriously, why do I always have such bad luck?

I go back to the same spot where Dan picked for me. You know, a desk surrounded by these gigantic bookshelves. And as I'm about to sit down, my cellphone rang. It was my mom calling; good thing there is still enough signal reception.

"Hello?" I greet.

"Runo?" my mom ask.

"Hi mom." I greet her again.

"Are you okay in there?" my mom asked, fearing that I couldn't come home.

"Yeah. I'm okay." I say to her with confidence.

My mom gave a huge sigh of relief after that. "Thank goodness you're alright, dear."

"I know." I said.

"Because I just watched the news this mornin-"

I interrupted her with another "I know." Then, mom couldn't even say a word. We've pause the conversation for just a few seconds and then my mom ask. "You know?"

"Yup." Then I give a brief explanation. "My principal announced earlier today that exams are cancelled because of the storm. She advised us to go home or to stay here in school. So I looked out the window and I couldn't see the whole city because of the storm."

"Well good thing she announced it to you earlier today." Says my mom. After that, my mom advised me: "Anyway, just wait there okay? I'll be there in a while."

"No, I'll do this on my own." I said to her.

"No honey! It's too dangerous! You can't do it on your own." She exclaimed.

"But mom, I'm mature to go by myself." I cried back.

"Not on this weather." She warned. "Anyway, I'll be there in a while."

"Bu-" I almost said that word until the phone hung. I think she dropped down the phone, considering that I was supposed to explain first.

'_Why do I always have a karma?_' I wander.

"THIS ISN'T FAIR!" I said. I banged the desk with my two bare hands. So loud that Dan heard it. So Dan woke up and he started to stare at me.

"Aren't you studying?" he asked.

"Suppose to." I replied. "My mom just called."

So he jumped up and stood: "Why? What did she say?"

I explained him: "Well, she was worried because of the blizzard today. So she's gonna come here in a while."

"In a while?" Dan asked.

I was getting nervous that she might actually come here: "Uh, I don't know… I don't know what time she's gonna come here."

I then added a prediction and then panicked: "What if Mom is going to be stranded on a subway station? What if she's stuck on a pile of snow? What if…"

Then Dan started to come closer to me and started to put his two hands on my shoulders. "Relax. Don't worry. Your mom's gonna be fine. I assure you that."

So I believed him and gave a huge sigh: "Yeah, I guess you're right." So he put off his arms in my shoulders and then started to say this: "I'll just go downstairs for a while."

I don't know what he's up to this time so I asked him: "Why?"

He replied: "Uh, just wandering around. Anyway, later." He puts his hand up showing his 'later' gesture and he continued to leave the library. I don't know what he's going to do this time but I sarcastically predict that he's going to do a prank on me. Actually, he's been doing this since I first came here to high school. Last time he put a prank on me was last week. As I walk out the opened door, I didn't notice that there was a bucket full of water on top. So the bucket fell and then splash onto me. I was soaking wet and tried to report it to the principal's office. Good thing, he was suspended for two weeks but that wasn't enough for me. It should be a one-month suspension. I don't want that to happen again.

= DAN'S POV =

As I walk through the school's hallway, I saw how students are doing to keep themselves warm. There were some students who were inside the cafeteria. I guess they wanted to have lunch so that they won't go hungry. There were also some students who were inside their classmates, not because they are studying; but also to have some chatting time. Even teachers can't escape the depths of being stranded inside the school. So they went to the teacher's lounge and sip their coffee. I also saw some of them waited anxiously for the blizzard to stop. Good thing that the power is still on, thanks to their new generator they just bought. At times there were flickers and sometimes blackouts but not this time! Such kind-hearted administrators! Wait, why am I saying such things like that.

Back to the story then – I went downstairs to the main hallway and I witnessed the maintenance team inspecting each and every lights to check if these are broken or not. _'Maybe there's another flicker accident.'_ I thought to myself. But as I walked towards the main doors of the school, I saw 3 mysterious, black people looking at the little window of the school's door. I guess that the maintenance team locked the doors and then advised to the students not to go outside yet. _'So much for their kind-hearted attitude._' I thought.

I walked a little bit closer towards the main door and to no surprise that these "mysterious" people are just my closest friends – Shun, Marucho, and Julie. '_But wait there is one person missing?_' I thought to myself once more. The three just stared at the window, wandering at the thick snow outside the school.

"Hey guys!" I greeted. And the three looked at me and greeted back: "Hey Dan!"

"What 'ya doin'?" I asked.

"Oh. Just looking at the window." Shun replied.

"Looking for Alice." Julie added.

Of course. I knew it all along. They were looking for Alice all this time.

So I asked them: "Why? Is Alice gonna come here? Didn't she knew that there's a blizzard going on?"

"But she didn't answer." Julie added.

Shun explained what's been going on: "I thought that she was here at school. But then, on her text message, Alice said that she's riding on a subway train and she's going to come here. That's her text message I've got. I replied her on my cellphone but she didn't answer."

The three of them deplored as if they lost a special friend. I thought: "I predict that maybe she noticed that there was a blizzard when she went upstairs and then went back down again to keep herself safe."

"Yeah, I guess…" Marucho said. "I guess you're right."

Julie added. "Maybe we panicked, that's why."

"Yup. Totally." Shun said. "Anyway, what time is it?"

Marucho looked to his watch and declared: "It's 8:45."

"Wow, that's fast. The time we began looking at the window is 7:55." Julie said.

"So it's almost an hour past?" I asked.

"Yup. Guess so." Marucho said.

So the three went back to what they're doing – looking at the window and see if Alice is there outside. Just then, I got an idea popping out of my head.

"While we wait for Alice, why don't you guys come to the library?" I said. "Runo might be waiting for us there." The three quickly jumped and then stare at me one more time.

"Really?" Julie was surprisingly waiting to see Runo's BFF. Well, talking about missing each other.

"Runo is here?" Marucho said.

"Yup." I replied.

"Well, what are you guys waiting for?" Shun asked.

And so they left the school's main door and followed me to the library. As we went upstairs, I already heard some of the noise from the hallway. I guess they just wanted to have some fun.

= END OF DAN'S POV =

The time on my wristwatch is exactly 9:00am. I wonder what Dan has been up to right now. I've been waiting for him for what; like an hour perhaps. So I was wandering around at the library and then I found something to read. Well, this library has not only books to study and for research but also entertained us as well. They have comic books, magazines, newspapers, etc. Everything's here in one special place. It is also my place to relax and forget the troubles I faced in school lately. And then I notice – from a faraway distance – someone's walking inside the school's library. It was Dan together with my closest friends, Marucho, Julie, and Shun. So I rush towards them and hug them afterwards.

"Hey guys!" I greet them.

"Hey BFF!" Julie replied.

"I thought you were stranded on a doomsday snowstorm." says Shun. Then I chuckled and thought to myself that they had their wildest imaginations.

"Nope. I was here even before the blizzard had started." And then I begin to confess myself: "I thought that I was going to die because the exams are supposed to be this morning. And suddenly…"

Shun interrupt: "The exams cancelled until further notice because of this doomsday blizzard."

"Yeah. That's right. Your prediction is correct."

"One thing's for sure." Marucho said, thinking that his prediction will also become true. The three stare at each other followed by their quick nods and they give a conclusion: "You procrastinate!"

I was shocked so I give a quick "WHAT?", which is very loud and heard from students in different angles at the library. They all glanced at me but it went off eventually. And so they laughed hardly as if I "procrastinate" on what happened today; and eventually fell into the floor. Comedy, much? Dan, on the other hand, gives his chuckle. So I shouted at them: "I'M NOT PROCRASTINATING?" Their laughs quickly fall off and the three stands up again and stares at me one more time.

"Really?" The three asked, as if that I was lying.

"Yes. Really!" I declare. Just then, Dan interrupts the conversation: "Whoa. Whoa. Let's not fight and start chatting." So we stop fighting and head to the spot where Dan picked earlier.

= A FEW HOURS LATER =

It's 10:45am on my wristwatch. Julie, myself, and Marucho study quietly at the library; Dan and Shun, on the other hand, walk outside and head to the cafeteria. Students are still keeping their lips sealed and instead study with their books or chatting with their friends online. Good thing the Internet connection is still working at this time. I was busy studying until Marucho and Julie push me to talk about Dan.

"So?" Julie asks me.

"What are you two doing at the library this morning?" Marucho adds the question.

I put down the book and start the conversation… quietly. Seriously, this is the library not a marketplace or something. I draw the two closer together so that they might hear each other.

"Well, this morning, I was about to wake up when Dan started to shout at me like this: 'HEEEYYYY RUUUUUNOOOOO!' My ears are irritating at the moment."

"Oooooohhhhh…" The two awe at me.

I explain further: "And then, Dan and I met again at a subway train. We sang the song "If I Die Young" by the Band Perry with his guitar. I'm not really obsessed with him or anything. The audience around us clapped as if we were rockstars or something."

"So that's why his guitar was here." Julie points the guitar leaning at the wall. Good thing the teachers didn't noticed because guitars are strictly prohibited in this library. Talk about their kind-hearted attitude.

"It's true. Your voice and his really bind together to create a perfect harmony."

"Really?" I was really getting nervous at some point. "But I was really annoyed at him."

"Why?" Marucho asks.

"Well, for two things: One, he is a pervert; and two, he has narcissism."

"Narcissism?" Julie wonders.

"On what?" Marucho adds.

"Y-you know…" I hesitantly answered. "On girls?"

"I know some girls like him because he is a heartthrob, a musician, and a basketball player." Marucho said.

"But he wants a girl that is not much of a fan and she's smart and nice and pretty." Says Julie.

"How'd you know about all this?" I ask her.

"Well, you see, Dan confessed me last week that he wants a girl who is special, someone to talk to, and also has a talent in music." Julie says.

"So?" I ask.

Marucho adds: "You are the person Dan has been looking for. Special, sweet, and talent in music."

"But we were just friends." I declare.

"And soon to be lovers…" Julie says. "You need to confess him that you really love him." I was blushed on what Julie had said to me. Well, true, he was a heartthrob, he is a musician, and he is a basketball player. And yes, he has passion when it comes to music because he sings it with all his heart. He always teases me whenever I'm around. I don't care about that. I just have to go down deep on him.

(Another song this time and it's called Deep by Binocular. Sing along with them, okay. If you have an mp3 player with you or your iPod, it's better. It's better also if you have a duet.)

(Pretend that you guys are Dan and Runo. Bold words are your lines. Good luck. xoxo)

**(Dan)**_So this is what you mean _

_And this is how you feel _

_So this is how you see _

_And this is how you breathe_

**(Runo) **_Sometimes, I know _

_Sometimes, I go down deep_

**(Dan and Runo)**_Ohh_

**(Runo)**_So this is what you mean _

_And this is how you feel _

_So this how you see _

_And this is how you breathe_

**(Dan)**_Sometimes, I know _

_Sometimes, I go down deep_

**(Dan and Runo)**_Ohh_

**(Dan)**_Beneath the deep blue sea _

_Touching every breath _

**(Runo)**_All a slight of hand _

_For everything you left_

**(Dan)**_Sometimes, I know _

**(Runo)**_Sometimes, I go down deep_

**(Dan and Runo)**_Ohh_

**(Dan)**_Sometimes, I give myself for you _

**(Runo)**_Sometimes, I know down deep_

(That's the end of the song. Good job, everybody. Now back to the story. xoxoxo)

= DAN'S POV =

Just as I thought, the cafeteria is now half empty. Shun and I are just checking to make sure if there is still food to eat. And the prediction is correct. Food is still invading the cafeteria! There is bake macaroni, corn soup, pizza, and rice. Thank goodness that the waitress is there to cook for us.

"Hey guys!" says Alexa, the cafeteria waitress. Alexa is just new here in school and she's 27 years old. She's always open to talk to other people and she's friendly, too. She is also open when it comes to problems – whether in school or lovelife. First, she hears it and then she'll give you a piece of advice. Now that's one friendly cafeteria waitress. That's why the principal hired her as the current guidance counselor of the school.

"Good morning, Ms. Alexa!" we greet her politely. After all, she's my school guidance counselor!

"What can I do for you two?" asks Alexa.

"Um… I want two bake macs and a hot chocolate drink, please." I ordered.

"Well, comin' right up." Alexa says. A few minutes later, it is served. "Two bake macs for the two best musicians."

"Thanks Miss!" we thank her.

"With pleasure." she replied.

Oh, I almost forgot. I'm also the lead singer and a guitarist of the band called DXS (that's Dan X Shun). Shun, on the other hand, is the second lead singer and a guitarist as well. Oh and did I mention that he is also the drummer and the team leader of the school's basketball team? Well, that's Shun all right. We sit down in the corner of the cafeteria and begin to talk.

"Dude, how's morning?" Shun asks.

"It's a prank." I replied.

"Really?" he eats the bake mac and starts to talk again. Talk about manners. "What did you do?"

"Well, I started with a quick yell to Runo."

"What!" exclaims Shun.

I chuckle: "This morning, I yelled at Runo and she was surprised. I hope that her ears irritate until now."

"Well, what did you say to her?" Shun asks me.

"I said to her: "HEEEEYYYYYY RUUUUUNOOOOO!"" I shouted. Then the students were looking at me while Ms. Alexa chuckled quietly. Maybe she listens the story.

"Then, Runo and I met again at the subway train but this time singing the song by the umm…" I forgot the title of the song. I should've stuck it in my head a while ago.

"You don't know the title?" Shun asks.

"Well, you know me. I might have an amnesia or something." I reply him nerviously.

"Well, go on." Shun says.

"And then, the passenger around the train clapped their hands. I guess Runo and I have the perfect harmony."

"Well, you two really are something."

"Something what?" I ask him.

"You know, you two have the perfect duet by singing that lovely song!" Shun says. "Maybe we should join her at the band."

"What? Runo?" I stand up in surprise. "No. No. No. I will never do that!" _'Runo? In the band?'_ I thought to myself. Well, I simply deny that suggestion. And I will never allow Runo joining the band. Never!

"Oh yeah?" Shun was challenging me. "Well, I heard her in the bathroom one time and she has that amazing voice. I suggest that you need to join her at the band."

"Well, that was the last time you said to me about that!" I exclaim. "Now, can we move on?"

"No!" Shun exclaims then stood up as well. Shun point a finger at my chest. "You need to join her at the band!"

A moment of silence starts after that. Students heard the scene even from a faraway distance. Even Ms. Alexa. Well, I know she has that amazing voice of hers and she also has an amazing talent of playing the guitar. But, when I put her at the band, jealousy will rise for our band members. I can't do that. I just don't want to put her in the band. Ms. Alexa goes into the scene.

"Okay guys! Just stop this and we'll settle this quietly." Ms. Alexa advises us. The students went back to what they're doing. Some of them went outside.

Ms. Alexa begins talking and she looks at me with a kind affection: "Dan, Shun's right. You need to join her at the band. She really has this amazing voice of hers and the whole school was amazed of her."

Ms. Alexa continued: "I remember the school contest last month. I was really amazed of her voice. Her voice really touches my heart. Although she won 2nd place at that contest, she still has the determination and passion to succeed. You, on the other hand, after the band won 1st place at the National Band Competition 2 months ago, I also heard your fantastic voice. Your voice was so gentle and powerful, you and your band might be joining America's Got Talent!"

"So?" I ask.

"So… you need to hire her at your band." She suggests.

"Well, I guess you have a point there, miss…" I said to her.

"See?" Shun says. "You need to hire her at the band. We could make her our best weapon!"

"But-" I said. "I need to decide first. It's not going to be easy. If she finds out now, she might get shocked."

Shun and Ms. Alexa exchanged glances. Although both Ms. Alexa and Shun have a very good point there, I need to decide first on whether to put her in the band or not. As I said, it's not going to be easy.

"Anyway, I'll see you later. Bye, Miss." I said, then leave Ms. Alexa and Shun behind. I couldn't eat the bake mac we've just ordered because of that. And so I went out of the cafeteria hoping to get a piece of mind. I should be going back to the library now cause it's almost 12 noon. Wow, the time really ticks fast.

= END OF CHAPTER TWO =

Finally, I finished chapter 2. Anyway, stay tuned as I am going to update my latest chapter, which is chapter 3. I finished typing that for what, 3 days perhaps. Anyways, please review. I guess my grammar really isn't that bad. Again thanks ilovecartoonslol for the review. Please review so that I can display it on my next chapter. Pwwwwwweeeeeeezzzzzzzz! Thanks so much!


	4. Chapter 3: Friends and Arguments

Tales of the Heart  
>Story One: Building Relationships<p>

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hey guys! It's time for chapter 3! And I'm going to feature some of the characters from Pokemon! "Why?" you may say. Well, let's just say that I wanted to make the chapter more interesting and making it more intense than the previous chapters I updated so far. That's the reason why. I also added the story of Ash and his journey in Pokemon. I also added to what happened after Ash Ketchum becomes a Pokemon Master. Anyway, I hope this chapter makes it more interesting. Cross my fingers!

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE SHOWS AND THE SONGS WHICH WILL BE USED IN THIS FANFIC STORY. THESE BELONG TO ITS RESPECTFUL OWNERS. I HOPE FOR YOUR KIND CONSIDERATION AND UNDERSTANDING.

RATING ADVISORY: THIS STORY IS A CERTIFIED "K+" FOR CHAPTERS THAT ARE BEST READ FOR ALL READERS YOUNG AND OLD, AND "T" FOR LATER CHAPTERS THAT ARE ONLY TO TEENS AGED 13 ABOVE.

**Chapter 3**

**Friends and Arguments**

= RUNO'S POV=

-sigh- Time? 11:45 and I'm still stranded inside school because of that blizzard. Oh, I wish it would stop. I'm still in the library with my friends – Marucho and Julie. I wonder what Dan and Shun gone off to? They said they went to the cafeteria to have some lunch but it's almost noon and they haven't been show off yet here. I guess they have gone off to somewhere else. Well, who cares about it anyway? Maybe they're talking about their projects in school 'cause they have low grades. Believe me, it's not easy going to summer school.

Marucho puts down the book and started to wonder: "Hey guys!"

Me and Julie were just reading an English book. So I pop out first and started to stare at him: "What is it Marucho?"

"Cat got your tongue?" Julie pops out second.

"No." he wonders. "I was just wondering."

"What?" I ask him.

"Dan and Shun have been gone for a while now." He says.

"So?" I ask him again.

"I wonder where are they? It's been a while." He says.

"Why?" Julie asks. "You miss them, haven't you?"

Marucho starts to blush at himself. He couldn't answer the "truth-or-die" question Julie was asking. So Julie and I started to draw close to him. So I say to him: "Come on, don't you miss your pals?"

"Well…" Marucho's face heads down and plays with his fingers. "Maybe a little."

"Oh come on Marucho." Julie says. "You know we're just joking."

"Yeah. You're too much serious." I add. Then we laughed afterwards.

"Speaking of them." Julie says. "Where are they, anyway?"

"Who cares about them?" I ask them. "Maybe they're still in the cafeteria getting some more food."

"I guess we need to call them." Marucho says.

So Marucho grabs his phone and tries to call Dan and Shun. First, we try to call Dan. After that, we heard a cellphone ringing. The three of us didn't notice that Dan's cellphone is inside his bag, which is under the table. So all that's left is Shun's number. And before the three of us could even call Shun, we spotted Dan walking inside the library.

"Look it's Dan!" Julie says. Dan stops walking and instead standing behind the main doors of the library.

"Dan!" we shouted. Oh, and don't worry about the librarian, Jeorge. He's always walking outside and always goes to the teacher's lounge for a little talk time. And so we ran towards him. Just as we ran towards him, I can almost see his sad face. He's always in a bad mood. ALWAYS!

"Hey Dan!" Marucho says and then he notices that he is in a bad mood.

Marucho then asks: "Why are you in a bad mood?"

Julie adds: "Is there something wrong?"

"No." Dan says. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." And then Dan starts to stare at me. Why? Am I involved in something?

"Why are you staring at me like that?" I ask. "Am I involved in something?"

"No. Nothing." Dan says. "I was just…um…just…"

"Just what? Pervert!" I ask him.

Then Dan starts to frown and asks me. "What did you just say to me?"

"I said." I draw closer to him and then I shout at him: "PERVERT!"

"Whoa." Dan says. "I'm not a pervert."

"Oh, yeah?" I say to him. "You're always been a pervert since first year. You're always started to put jokes on me."

"Am not." Dan says.

"Am too." I say to him back.

He repeatedly says: "Am not!"

"Am too!" I said to him repeatedly.

"Okay guys! That's enough." Julie stopped the fight. "This is not a boxing ring!"

Marucho adds: "Guys, we might hear us."

"It is too late now, Marucho." Julie says. "We've been staring at us since the fight started." Students from every corner of the library have been staring at us since the fighting began. But I don't care about that.

"I don't care about that." I say to Julie and Marucho. "All I wanted to hear is his explanation on why he's such in a bad mood." Dan walks away, leaving the three of us behind. I was about to follow him until Julie grabbed my arm.

"Come on, Runo." Julie says. "This is going too far."

"Yeah." Marucho adds. "Maybe he has some personal matters in mind. We do not want to disturb him, do we?"

Well, I guess, Marucho is right. I do not want to disturb him. Maybe he has some personal issues in mind that the three of us aren't involved. But why is he staring at me? I just want to know. I'm not eavesdropping, am I?

"I just wanted to ask him why is he upset." I explain.

"I know." Marucho says. "But we don't want this fight to be worse, right?"

Julie adds. "It's better to just…" Julie pauses for a second. Then, she turns around and noticed Dan grabbing his books from his bag. He's still frowning. By then, he starts to study with the head down and putting his two hands on his forehead. She continues: "…leave him be."

So I nodded. "I guess you're right."

"Phew. Now that's over, I can almost feel my stomach growling." Julie says.

"Me too." Marucho says.

"Same here." I say to them. "Let's eat at the cafeteria."

Both Julie and Marucho agreed and we went outside and head to the cafeteria. But wait, if Dan is at the library, where's Shun? I wonder where he gone off to. Dan and Shun both went to the cafeteria to have some lunch there. Maybe he's still in the cafeteria and I'm sure of it.

= SHUN'S POV =

_I really hate him! I really hate Daniel! I just want to join Runo in the band. She is really good at singing. Maybe she could be the lead singer for our band. But I don't understand why Dan doesn't want her to join the band. Why? Why doesn't he want her to join in? Maybe he has some secrets surrounding him._ Those are the few things that I want to know while I was walking through the hallways of the school. The hallways are empty. It should've been full of students walking to and fro, especially during school days. But it changed when the principal announced that there was a snowstorm raging in through parts of Illinois – including Chicago. It was like a "haunted house" here.

As usual, some students wanted to stay inside the classrooms to talk or to plan for their projects after the exams. Others wanted to stay inside the classroom just wanted to hang out or chat with their crushes. I'm so disgusted at them.

I don't want to go to the library after what happened at the cafeteria. I guess Dan is there, but I'm just letting him decide whether to put Runo in the band or not. Anyways, back to my point of view.

As I went downstairs to the first floor of the school's main building, I notice that the door of one classroom was left open. I look up and I see the sign "Room 114". After that, I look at another sign – this time it is at the door. The sign says like this: "Third Year Section 3 Homeroom. Home of the popular cheerleading team and the true champion in basketball!" Wow, maybe this is one of the most popular sections of all high school year levels. I just remembered that this section also awarded as "The Most Disciplined Section" last September by our principal. We, Fourth Year Section 2, won second place followed by Third Year Section 5 and First Year Section 7. In this high school, we have a total of 23 sections. Yup, 23 sections! First Year has 7 sections, Second Year has 6 sections, and both Third and Fourth Year have 5 sections each. So I went inside the classroom since no one is there. When I looked inside, the classroom was left untidy. There is an open window, causing the snow to fall down on the floor. The lights were open and the chairs were messy. I thought this is the most disciplined section. I looked at the blackboard and I saw some of the marks left not erased. There are some marks like "Dawn X Ash", "Admit it Ash that you like Dawn", and there is another one in a nice handwriting that says "Whoever writes that should be punished – Dawn B." There is another mark in the center of the blackboard that says: "Woohoo. Exams postponed as of 7am today. You may go out whatever you want."

There is also a drawing illustrates a girl wearing a navy tank top and a pink mini skirt with a bonnet on her head and a spike haired boy wearing a black tshirt and a pair of jeans. They are joined together by a reddish pinkish heart. At the bottom of the drawing it writes: "Ash Ketchum loves Dawn Berlitz. Admit it!" I said it to myself: "Wow. Love is in the air all right." Well, who knows maybe these two have become lovebirds since they met. And who are Ash Ketchum and Dawn? I believe these two will make a better couple.

All in all there were 26 brown armchairs inside this classroom and 6 of those chairs have bags on it. These were old chairs but the school administrators said that they wanted to paint those chairs to make it new again. And so they did – at all classrooms in this school. And it's not only brown. Every section, they painted those chairs with different colors – such as green, blue, yellow, and red – representing different year levels. So I went into one of these chairs and I saw one armchair with scribbles all around it. Talk about vandalism. I also saw a writing that says: "This is A.K.'s chair. Do not sit on it or else…" To finish it off, he put an angry face at the end of his sentence. His bag was nice though. The color of his bag is dark green with decorations around it. I wanted to look for details about this guy, so I sit on his chair. I don't care about his rules for sitting on his chair. Besides, it's not his property. It's the school's property.

As I look for details, I saw a pin sticking outside his bag. It is a pin showing a picture of a guy just like the drawing on the blackboard. But on this picture, he looks different. The picture showing his head wearing a red and black cap with a logo that looks just like a ball. But it is a different ball. It has a circle at the center of it. I opened the zipper of the bag. When I looked inside his bag, I saw books stacked inside it. Then, I notice in his bag something flicker. So I looked further and the flicker was just his cellphone. Or is it? So I took it out. "Wow." I said to myself. "That's one interesting cellphone." His cellphone was different. The size is thinner and its shape is a small rectangle. I accidentally pull it upwards and it is a sliding type cellphone. I clicked one of the buttons and the screen started to turn on.

After that, there is a voice saying: "Welcome, Ash Ketchum." So I said to myself once more: "So this is Ash Ketchum's cellphone." In his wallpaper, I saw the picture of himself carrying an unknown creature. That creature looks just like a lizard but it is different. He has a leaf sticking out of his mouth. That's not the lizard I know when I visited the zoo. Then, it displays a message saying: "A video message from your mother." So I opened the message and it shows her mother wearing a ponytail, obviously. She also wears a pink shirt, dress or whatever it is. And then the video message begins: _"Ash, dear. Are you okay in there? I hope you're okay. Because the weather announcer announced this afternoon that the blizzard will last for a couple of hours. I wish you're safe inside. Take care honey. Love you."_ And it ended with a kiss. I thought it was me but it is for Ash. I disgusted myself as the message ends. "Talk about being mama's boy." I said to myself.

I looked around the classroom and I saw no one looking from the classroom's door. And still it is left open. So instead, I closed the door and even the windows, which is still open when I came here. I wonder what's inside his cellphone or whatever that is. But I don't want to eavesdrop myself so I put the cellphone back to where it came from. When I looked inside the bag once more, I saw a bunch of little balls with a circle at the center of it. I saw them in awe. What cute balls he have? So I close the zipper tightly showing no one opened the bag without permission. Well, at least I know really well about this person. Sort of. So I stood up and looked the other bags as well. One chair also writes: "This is Dawn's chair. Property, shmoperty. You can sit on my chair whenever you like. I'm not going to offend you or anything."

Good thing, this chair really knows that this is school's property. So I sat on it. As I sat on her chair, I saw her picture sticking at the armchair. It shows a picture of her that also looks just the same like the drawing at the blackboard. Her hair is long and blue-colored, too. She has a bonnet on her head and also wears a navy sleeveless shirt and a mini-skirt, too. And boy, that picture is dirty. I don't want to remove it because you know it's hers. Just like Mr. Ash's bag, I also peeked in to Dawn's bag as well. She has tons of stuff, including her books, her ballpens, her paper, even her folders. "Wow, does she really need all of this stuff?" I thought to myself. "Talk about grade school." I was surprised when I saw this expensive tablet phone. Wait, this is not just an ordinary tablet. It's an iPad! "Woah! You're a rich kid!" I said to myself. "It maybe expensive but I really want to take a look at this." I clicked one of the apps on her iPad. Talk about without permission. When I slide the tab, I notice an app called "Angry Birds". Wait a minute, I heard this one before. It's a game when you launch a bird using a launching device, fly it in the air, and smash onto one of the blocks to pulverize (or rather destroy) the enemy bird inside the blocks. You will earn points when you defeat the birds at each round. I installed it in my android phone so I don't wanna use it in this iPad. I mean, HER iPad. Instead, I surf the internet using this baby with the help of the school's wifi connection. It's still on even in the extreme weather like this. Then, I heard a sound coming in from the door. But who cares about it anyway? So I keep on surfing and surfing until I saw three or four black shadows on the floor.

"What do you think you're doing?" one voice said. "You know that's not yours!" I looked up and I saw four people looking at me while I'm surfing at the Internet through the iPad, which is not MINE! I saw two girls and two boys keep on staring at me. "Well?" a girl asked me. When I saw that girl, I noticed that she was the same from the drawing in the blackboard and the picture from the armchair. She is a blue long haired girl wearing a bonnet on her head. And this time, her clothes were different from the drawing. She wears a black t-shirt with a message says "Heartbreaker" and a pair of skinny jeans. She also has a red scarf wrapping all around her neck and wears a pair of yellow sandals for her feet. "Um…" I nervously said to her. "Dawn, I think he's not from our section." One boy said. The boy was also familiar. He was the same from the drawing in the blackboard. His hair is spiky and wore a red cap on his head. But his clothes were different. He wears a checkered tshirt and a pair of denim jeans. He wears a pair of Nike sport shoes. "I know." She replied back. "S-sorry about that." I handed it over to her. "I believe that's yours." She quickly grabbed the iPad and thanked me. "T-thanks."

While I paused the conversation, she quickly inspects her iPad to check whether I touched her personal information or I played games from it. All I did was to surf in the Internet. I should've used my android phone next time. Then, Dawn looked at my I.D. I know, my I.D. picture looks really ugly. I took a picture of myself creating a strange look. Dawn chuckled as she looked at it. And the conversation continued: "You're a fourth year, right?" she asked me.

"Yeah." I replied.

"Well, it's nice to meet you." She said to me. "What's your name?"

"Shun." I shake hands with her afterwards. "Shun Kazami. 16 years of age."

"I'm Dawn." She says. "Dawn Berlitz. 15 years. Turning 16 on January."

"Nice to meet you, Dawn Berlitz."

"Hi. The name's Misty." she said. "Misty Waterflower. Also 16."

"Nice to meet you, Misty Waterflower." I shook hands with her afterwards. Misty Waterflower was an orange long-haired girl wearing a yellow tank top with printed flowers all over it. She also wore a pair of skinny jeans just like Dawn. For her feet, she wore a pair of rubber shoes.

Another man appeared and came near me. "Paul." He whispered. "Paul Shinji. 15." Now he's one shy type kind of a person. Paul Shinji is a purple haired type of person wearing a purple jacket and a pair of black pants. He also wears a pair of Sketchers rubber shoes. Talk about being casual. I shook hands with him while I greet him friendly. "Nice to meet you, Paul Shinji."

"Guess you're the last one left." I said to the guy wearing a red cap.

"Yup." He said. "The name's Ash Ketchum. 16 years of age." He shook hands with me afterwards.

I greeted him: "Nice to meet you. Ash Ketchum."

"_Wait a minute." _I thought to myself. _"Are those guys from the drawings in the blackboard? Do Ash and Dawn really are meant to be? I need to ask them."_

"So you two are from the blackboard." I pointed the blackboard. "You really are meant to be together." Both Dawn and Ash blush their faces proving that these things aren't real. Well for me, I don't care as long as they tell the truth.

She rushed towards the blackboard. "No-no-no-no-no" she lied. "T-t-t-t-those t-t-t-things-s-s aren't t-t-t-tru-u-u-u-ue." So she wiped the blackboard with her bare hands, making her nervous. "Hehehehe. You're just mistaken, Shun."

"I see." I said. "I think I eavesdropped myself a little."

"You're not. You're not." Misty opposed my statement. And then, she came closer to me: "You see, they really ARE meant to be together." That sentence teased both Ash and Dawn.

"Stop it!" Dawn exclaimed while wiping on the blackboard with her bare hands. "This is making me MAD! LITERALLY! You're the one who wrote that in the first place so you should erase that mark before you leave."

Misty looked at Dawn and said to her. "You know there's an eraser in front of you, Dawn."

Dawn turned around and she saw an eraser on top of the teacher's desk. "Oooops. Sorry." She chuckled afterwards.

"You need to admit that you like him." Misty said to Dawn. "After all, he's just beside you."

"Oh yeah?" Ash declared and asked. "Well why do you hang out with that playboy of yours, Gary Oak?"

"I'm not hanging out with Gary, oh no no." She replied. "He's my best friend, NOT my BOYFRIEND!" She chuckled afterwards.

"Who is Gary Oak?" I asked. "Why is he a playboy?" After that, they stared at me and kept their mouths shut for a few seconds. So I said: "Okay? I understand."

"You really must've met him for a long time, I guess." I concluded.

"Yup." Everybody said.

I confessed: "I really don't know him yet. Can you please tell me?" I added: "And can you please stop staring at me like that? You guys are really weird."

So they stopped the staring and began the conversation, instead.

"You see." Misty explained. "Ash Ketchum right here…" She pointed to Ash and he waved his hand. "…met Gary Oak since he was a kid. He lives in a town called Pallet Town from the Kanto Region. The truth is, Ash is a Pokemon master."

"Pokemon master?" I was confused at that point. "I really don't know that one, but tell me more about that."

She continued: "Pokemon, in short for Pocket Monsters, is one of these creatures which are commonly known here on Earth"

"Really?" I asked. "Go on."

"We kept these 'creatures' in a special device called a Pokeball." She said and Ash handed these "Pokeballs" to her. _"Wow I can't believe they have interesting devices like these."_ I thought to myself. _"So that's why the balls have differences from the ball I actually see in normal places. Basketball, Volleyball, Tennis Ball. But this ball is different."_

"These Pokeballs are designed to capture a Pokemon and release it if there is a battle or other emergencies. Ash Ketchum mastered these creatures and also battled with the gym leaders far and wide. So he becomes a Pokemon Master."

"Wow." I said. "So how did he meet Gary Oak?"

"Well," She replied. "he met him from a laboratory of one of the world famous Pokemon professor, Professor Oak."

"So why is he a playboy?" I asked.

"He really falls in love with girls." She said. "I really don't care about him since he is addicted to girls."

"Talk about being a ladies man, huh?" I asked.

"Yup." She said then continued the story. "So he started his journey to be a Master and during his journey, he met three gorgeous women - Me, May, and Dawn."

"Who's May?" I asked.

"May – in short for May Maple – is a friend of mine." She said. "Like I said earlier, she is one of Ash's friends. She lives in a region called Sinnoh but moved here to Chicago. She's 16 years of age just like me and she is a Pokemon coordinator."

"So how do you meet him?"

She continued: "I met him during fishing in a pond. He took my bike and suddenly left off. He met May after some troubles with her Pokemon. Dawn, on the other hand, met him after Ash right here lost his Pikachu from a battle against Team Rocket – the most notorious crime trio when it comes to snatching Pokemon. They almost snatch Pikachu and his Pokemon so that they can create some kind of weapon. I don't want to summarize the whole part of it."

"Wow, interesting story." I concluded.

"Yup." She concluded as well. "Interesting story indeed."

"So why do you came here to Chicago?" I asked.

She said: "Well, after Ash Ketchum became a Pokemon Master, I thought to myself: _'What if we could go back to normal life and just forget this stuff?'_ To tell you the truth, I just don't want to live my life battling anymore and so I said to my mom. _'What if I could go abroad and forget about this life as a Pokemon coordinator?'_ And so my mom allowed me to go abroad. I picked Chicago because of the busy streets and the wonderful skyscrapers. I just want to keep myself relaxed for a while. One cold day, I met Dawn and May in a supermarket. They were buying fruits and seafoods. So I rushed at them and they were so happy to see me. They cried and hugged me at the same time. I also met Ash, Paul, Drew, and Gary at the door of the supermarket. They were really excited to see me. Ash, Drew, and Gary said their parents really wanted to go abroad to study to a good and world-class education. Until now, I don't know the reason why Paul came here. He was quiet back then."

"Wow, wonderful story." I said.

"Yup." She said. "That story has a happy ending."

"But what about your real home?" I asked. "I guessed you guys missed them?"

"Well, yeah." Dawn said. "We miss our real home. But we love Chicago. We love the great sights and sounds here and cause the culture of every citizen here. We wonder what is it like to be an American citizen since our originating nationality is Japanese."

"I see." I said. "So guys, do you want to eat?" Again, they exchanged faces and this time the 4 whispered and came closer to each other. It took about a few seconds to decide until they came their final decision.

"Yup." The four agreed.

Misty said: "Actually, I was about to tell you guys earlier that my stomach is growling."

Ash added: "I also feel the same way, too."

"Me three." Dawn said. "And Paul felt it too, I think?" I looked at Paul and still he is still keeping his mouth shut. Maybe he has "butterflies in his stomach".

"Well, what are you guys waiting for?" I said. "Let's go. Let's not keep the food waiting."

So the four packed their bags and left the classroom. I joined them and started to walk going to the cafeteria. I wonder if my friends are still at the library, just in case. Maybe they're waiting for me there.

= END OF CHAPTER THREE =

Whew. That was one long chapter three. Keep updated to this story regularly because I'm going to start my chapter 4 next right after this. In the meantime, please review about this chapter. If you have any thoughts, comments, and suggestions about this chapter, please let me know. I'm going to post your reviews in my next chapter. Thanks!


	5. Chapter 4: Meeting With Newbies

Tales of the Heart

Story One: Building Relationships

Authors Note:

Hey guys, I'm back with the new chapter. You know I was wondering: Everybody has a boyfriend and a girlfriend, right? Well, here is a word of advice: Pick a girl or a boy that you truly deserve to be your boyfriend or your girlfriend. I am also going to add another characters of Pokemon – May Maple and Drew Hayden. Contestshipping Fans get ready. I hope this chapter works for you guys. If you have any thoughts, comments or anything that comes into your mind, please review. But for now, read first so that you will understand.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE ANIMES OR THE SONGS, WHICH WILL BE FEATURED IN THIS STORY. THESE BELONG TO ITS RESPECTFUL OWNERS. TAKE NOTE ALSO THAT THIS IS FICTION, NOT REALITY. I HOPE YOUR KIND APPRECIATION AND UNDERSTANDING WILL BE DEEPLY GRATEFUL.

RATING ADVISORY: THIS CHAPTER IS RATED "T". IT CONTAINS SCENES, THEMES, AND SITUATIONS, WHICH ARE NOT MEANT FOR THE YOUNG READERS TO READ. THIS IS FOR TEENS ONLY. ASK YOUR PARENTS FIRST, KIDS.

The word in Italics means that this is my narration or the song, which will be featured in this story.

**Chapter 4**

**Meeting with Newbies**

_ It is 10 minutes past noon on a chilly weather in Chicago. Blizzard was still taking place across the city and the state of Illinois. Residents were started to panic because of the extreme weather, causing electricity loss, inadequate water supply, and loss of cellphone signals across the state. Cars were unable to move. Passengers were stranded in public transportation stations, hoping that they can go home. Schools were suspended and offices were deliberately shut down. Some houses in the residential areas were covered by snow, including roads. Some people are trying to remove the snow. One high school, though, is keeping the power back on. Loneloss High School _(in which I called as the school where Dan Kuso and Runo Misaki were studying) _was_ _generating their electricity because of its state-of-the-art modern generator. Students were keeping a close eye on the storm. Some were impatient, others were waiting for the storm to stop. The hallway in some parts of the school campus – including the annex building, the learning resource centre, and the gymnasium complex, was dark and scary, which was once filled with students hoping to pass for their final exams. Administrators were warned not to go in these hallways until further notice. One man tried to break the administrators warning. He was leaning at the wall and right in front of the girls' comfort room door. Although the hallway was dark and quiet, this guy right here doesn't care about it. The green spiked hair was in his 16s. He wore a purple long sleeved jacket _(he doesn't use buttons, though)_ and a black sleeveless shirt as his inner shirt. That boy's name is Drew Hayden. As he waited for someone going out of the girls' comfort room, he looked at his wrist watch and then started to complain._

"Are you done?"_ he asked. But then, no one answered. " I guess she is still in the comfort room doing her 'hygiene'." He thought. So he went towards the door and knocked at it. _

"Hey, May!" _he knocked._ "Are you done? You've been there for a couple of minutes." _Then he waited for a couple of minutes hoping to get the girl out of the comfort room. Maybe she doesn't want to be disturbed, that's the reason why she doesn't replied._

= 15 minutes later =

_The girl went out of the comfort room and gave a sigh of relief. The 16-year old girl was wearing a red bandana on her head. She also wears a sleeveless orange tank top and a pair of skinny jeans. She also wears a pair of Sketchers shape-ups. The girl's name is May Maple._

"Much better." _She said as she went out of the comfort room. Then, she saw Drew sleeping on the floor. She saw his saliva falling down on his lips so she wiped it on his face. As she wiped his face, he suddenly opened her eyes and saw May staring at him._

_He whispered: _"Hey hon."

"Same to you too."_ She replied back. So he grabbed her and she screamed. He kissed her on the lips afterwards. It was a passionate kiss. Then she pushed him on the chest, making him stop the kiss. May then said: _"Stop it. We might see us from the dark."

"So what?" _Drew asked. _"It's just the dark. After all, the teachers aren't watching over us. They're maybe scared of the dark." _Drew laughed afterwards._

"Well yeah but what if the 'teacher' you just said a while ago has a flashlight and says like this…" _May pointed at Drew's chest and started to imitate the teacher's voice. To be sounded like the teacher, she used a boy's voice of the teacher_: "Hey what are you doing here young man. And why are you smooching a girl in the middle of the hallway?"

"I know that." _Drew said. _"But how about this…" _He doesn't want to imitate the voice of the teacher but instead he used a voice of a matured adult man. He started to pull her closer and said to her whisperly:_ "Who cares about the teacher as long I care for you, hon." _So she started to scream again and began the kissing. Just like earlier, it was a passionate kiss. It should last forever until she pushed him again_: "I think the kissing should be enough for today."

_He smirked: _"You know I've been waiting for you for a few minutes and now it's…"_ He looked at his watch and he saw that the time is… _"It's 12:26."

_She chuckled: _"Hon, we've been together since we were kids, we've been dating officially since we were freshmen, and now you've been quite impatient lately."

_So May and Drew got off and stood off from the floor. _"Well you're really slow when it comes to proper hygiene."

"Really?" _May asked. She thought about it for a few seconds and then she realized that she went to the bathroom for 25 minutes. So she went near him, begging for apology. _"Oh, I'm… so… sorry, hon."

"Well you should be." _Drew said. _"Besides, why are you always focusing on your personal self when you have me by your side?"

"Hmph." _May said. Drew flicked his hair proving that his statement is true. _"I'm always right. You should know that." _May imitate Drew's voice and started to speak the same sentence._ "You should know that." _She was really annoyed when he said that word._

"I heard that." _Drew said. _"Come on, let's go back to the classroom."

"Yeah. We should." _So she clung on to Drew's arm, proving that she still loves him. They began walking together. As they walked back to the classroom, she saw Drew looking serious. Probably, he's still mad on what happened back at the comfort room. So she asked Drew: _ "Drew, are you still mad at me about what happened there?"

_She waited for Drew's response but he doesn't respond to her question. So she instead apologized to him:_ "I'm so sorry Drew. I know I shouldn't be doing slow back there."

_So May imitated the poor pooch looking sad and asked:_ "Do you forgive me, hon?" _So Drew gave a sigh and looked at May. _"May, I know I've been acting kind of impatient back there. I should be saying sorry to you for what I did." _So they both stare at each other for a few seconds. May then asked once again: _"You know you forgive me right hon?"

_He nodded as a sign of 'yes': _"Yeah. I forgive you." _So May smiled and hugged with Drew. At last, she leaned on to Drew's shoulder as they head back to the classroom._

= BACK TO THE CLASSROOM =

_When they went back to the classroom, they saw that their classmates – Dawn, Paul, Ash, and Misty – are gone. They brought their bags with them, too. They thought that they are going for lunch since most of them aren't eating yet._

"They're gone!" _May said._

"Without us?" _Drew asked then flicked his green glossy hair. _"How pathetic!" _So they both stare at each other and began to laugh, proving that this is just a coincidence._

"Maybe they're heading for the cafeteria." _May said._

"Yeah. I guess so." _Drew said. _"Let's look for them there."

"Yup." _May said. So they brought their bags and head to the cafeteria to grab some lunch as well._

= RUNO'S POV =

We grab some lunch at the cafeteria. And for lunch, I bought bake macaroni and salad. I also bought sandwich just in case I get hungry. For Marucho, he bought bake macaroni and burger steak. And as for Julie, she bought only sandwich – 2 loaves of them. At first, both Marucho and I were worried because what if she's hungry and the cafeteria is running out of food. We thought that she might get starved. So we ask her:

"Julie?" I said.

"Yeah?" she said.

"Are you sure you're going to eat those?" I asked. "Because you might get hungry."

"It's okay, Runo." She replied. "And don't worry about me, though. I'm okay with it."

"Are you really sure?" Marucho asked.

"Yeah, I'm really sure." She replied then ate her first loaf of sandwich. Then she continued talking while eating her sandwich: "Trust me. I'm not going to be hungry." Talk about manners, though.

"Okay, Julie." I said.

"Whatever you say." Marucho said. Then the cafeteria lady, Ms. Alexa came close to our table. "So you guys enjoy the meal?" she asked.

"Yeah!" we both pleaded. I always love her blonde hair, her blue colored eyelids, her nice advice to everyone at school if one classroom has a problem or anything. Rumor has it that she's now the current guidance counselor of our school. I don't know that if that gossip is true or not but who cares about that. She is 27 years of age; perfect for her to marry a handsome man.

"Well you should be…" she said. "Cause no one can resist the taste of my finest dishes."

"So that's why everyone really enjoyed the taste of your dishes, right miss?" Julie asked.

"Yup." She said. "Some of the students that went outside are saying some positive notes about my dish even the blizzard is still taking place."

"And believe me…" she said, imitating the voice of a matured man: "Even the strongest of the strong can't resist the smell of my famous dish." The three of us laughed afterwards; and so is Ms. Alexa.

Ms. Alexa is really nice. She's cute, pretty, and friendly. She is also active when it comes in participating some activities in school. But all I want to hear is her famous word of advice. She always gives some advice when it comes to problems. So I started the conversation with her with happened this morning.

"Ms. Alexa?" I asked.

"Yeah?" She replied. Then sat down with us.

"What happened to Dan?" I asked. "I mean he's acting really strange today."

"Yeah." Julie added. "You know this morning when the three of us went towards him, he's some kind of a bad mood."

"Yup." Marucho said. "I totally agree. What happened to him? Do you know?"

"Well, why would Dan acting kind of strange or somewhat in a bad mood?" she asked.

"I really don't know." I said.

"That's why we wanted to ask you, Ms. Alexa." Julie said.

"All I said to him is to decide on whether to put Runo in the band or not." Ms. Alexa said.

"I know but why did he do th-" I paused for a bit and I looked at Marucho and Julie for a few seconds before the three of us shouted.

"WHAT!" we both exclaimed. Ms. Alexa then surprised afterwards. The students then looked at the three of us. Ms. Alexa then looked at the students and said to them: "Sorry guys about that." So the students returned to their usual routine.

"Come on guys." Ms. Alexa advised us and whispered. "Do you please have to shout?"

"No we're just shocked." I said. I was shocked on what Ms. Alexa said to me earlier.

"But why did he have to do that?" Julie said.

"He should've told us before he came to the library acting like that!" Marucho said.

"Shun suggested first that she wanted you Runo to join at his band." Ms. Alexa explained. "But then, Dan opposed that idea."

"Why that Shun!" I exclaimed.

"But why did he suggested like that?" Julie asked.

"Well, it's because that Runo has such powerful voice, Shun suggested that she wanted to join at the band. He also said that Runo would be the band's best weapon! I guess the reason why Dan's acting like this is because you guys kept on fighting with each other without the true cause! One time, I saw you guys fighting with the school garden about who is going to hoe the plants as part of your Environmental Livelihood project, am I right?"

I was blushed afterwards before I admit it that it was true: "Well, yeah."

"I guess that Ms. Alexa and Shun has a good point there, Runo." Julie said. "You really have that amazing voice of yours the students can't even resist it."

"Yeah. I suggested that you should join." Marucho suggested.

"What!" I exclaimed. "I don't want to join the band with that pervert leader!"

"Oh come on Runo." Julie pleaded.

"You have to join." Marucho said. "I want to hear your voice and Dan's."

So Ms. Alexa put her hand on my right shoulder: "Do you know what I said to them about your singing talent and theirs?"

I whispered: "What?"

Ms. Alexa then explained: "I said to them that you have this amazing voice and the whole school was amazed of what you did."

"And then?" I asked.

Ms. Alexa then continued: "I said to them that I was really amazed at your voice when you competed at the school's singing contest last month. The audience really loved it. It touches the audience's hearts and so am I. But although you won 2nd place at that event, you still have the determination and passion to succeed. Then I said to them about their winning of the National Band Competition two months ago. He is really good at singing and the audience really loved it too. I also suggested that they have to join America's Got Talent! The band won first place back then!"

So I thought to myself: _"Wow, they are really awesome. I heard the band one time during a sportsfest opening ceremony and Dan sing pretty good. Well, I should be joining the band, too."_ So I came up with my final decision.

"Okay, I'll join." I said.

Both Julie and Marucho glanced at each other and after that they glanced at me. I was surprised on why they look so happy that way.

"Super!" she loudly exclaimed.

"That's awesome!" Marucho exclaimed as well.

Then Ms. Alexa finally gave her sigh of relief: "Well, that's great." Then she stood up. "And oh, I almost forgot something." Then Ms. Alexa came close to me. I stood up as well, avoiding Julie and Marucho about this. She then advised me: "If you and Dan are ready, meet me in the office. I have some very important news to tell you two. Please tell Dan about this, okay?"

I whispered: "Sure." I sat down and Ms. Alexa said farewell to the three of us. She went back to the cashier's desk watching if there were any customers entering the cafeteria. So the three of us stopped talking to each other. We began talking to each other after we eat.

"Are you surprised about this?" Julie asked.

"Well, yeah I am." I replied.

"Me too." Julie said. "I was really surprised on that note." I chuckled after that. Julie continued: "But why did Dan do such a thing? Why didn't he told it earlier?"

Marucho predicted: "Maybe he's too embarrassed to talk about it."

"I guess so." Julie agreed.

So I thought: _"I guess she's right. Why did he have to do that? He should've told us earlier instead doing such nonsense acts. That pervert! Does he think he can run away from that?"_ And so I continued: "How about you, Marucho. Are you surprised, too?"

"Well yeah." Marucho said. "He thinks he can run away from that. Well I'm about to tell him the consequences he's going to take."

"Well, I agree." Julie said.

Marucho said: "Shun literally wants you to be in the spotlight. I wonder what the conversation really looked like."

"How about we'll talk to Shun at the library and see what it looks like. Then we'll embarrass Dan to tell him that we caught him red-handed." I suggested.

"Speaking of Shun." Julie said. "Guess who's here in the cafeteria." She pointed directly at the cafeteria and I saw Shun standing behind a group of friends. 4 of them, I guess. They're all in line and he's standing in front of the cashier's table. Maybe he's ordering something. After he ordered, Ms. Alexa pointed directly at us. She said to him: "Oh, she's over there." Just like that. And Shun was smiling, rushing towards us. And the four followed him.

"Hey, Shun." I said.

"Hey guys!" he greeted.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I thought you're going to the library." Marucho said. "So we headed to the cafeteria to check on you, but you're not here so…"

"We were so worried about ya, man." Julie said.

The 17-year old, long-haired Shun apologized: "I'm very sorry, guys. I was just wondering around the school until I met these guys." He then pointed at the four he just mentioned. My guessing is that they are juniors.

"They?" I asked.

"Mm-hmm." He nodded.

Two boys and two girls were just standing and staring at us. And I noticed their cheeks turning red and then whispered to each other, considering the fact that they are shy. Looks like we have some new friends. I wonder who they are?

**To be continued…**

= END OF CHAPTER FOUR =

So guys, did you enjoy it? I need to continue this with a new chapter, since I have school this semester. Good luck for me. Anyway, please review!


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